Six weeks in, countless phone calls, numerous different hoops jumped through, plenty of co-payments (@ $15 a pop), and most of the doctors have to be fucking forced at gunpoint to even palpate the part of my finger that hurts. They have no fucking clue, and seem completely incurious as to what could be wrong with it. Hey, I can make a fist, I can extend my fingers, what more could I ask for? Oh, I haven't been able to climb for six weeks? Why should they care about that?

Fucking stupid fucking fuckers! I'm getting really tired of going round and round the healthcare machine, and no-one offering a shred of useful info. Clearly something is wrong with either my tendon or my tendon pulley, but when I mention these (or explain the ganglion cysts I've had in the same place - caused by small ruptures in the tendon sheaths) they start looking nervous and acting like they haven't studied this stuff in a long time, and why the hell did I have to get this stupid patient, why couldn't I be treating someone with a broken leg - broken legs I understand. Raahhh!

Next I try the fucking physical therapist that the orthopedist pawned me off on. Oh, except that they were supposed to call me, and didn't, so now I have to hound them.

Sorry, had to get that off my chest. I'm tired of being polite and helpful and a good little health-services user. I want my fucking finger to work again, or at least someone to tell me what the fuck is wrong with it!!!

Move to Canada... at least you won't have to pay for being dicked around! mmmmm Free Health Care... Oh yah the down side is that if you want a transplant, major operation, a specialist or a MRI you'll have to be put on the 2 year waiting list. But it's free!

reno: The Boston area. Somerville to be specific. Sure. PM me if you have any good recommendations. I'll take whatever you've got. Thanks, guys, for letting me rant.

c4c: Sadly, no - the ring finger, not the middle finger. Too bad, would love to be able to show my middle finger to a few doctors.

Angry: yup, totally. They're like - hey, you're under 300 lbs, nothing's broken, no chronic diseases, what the fuck do you want? Next doctor I talk to I'm going to get personal. I'm going to ask them if what they do for an avocation. Let's say they say they've been playing tennis for fifteen years. I'll ask, what they'd do if their doctor told them "oh, well, arm injuries, who knows, at your age, it might take a year or more to heal, meanwhile, it's best to immobilize it."

Yeeesss! Welcome to my world. I´ve had fucking recurring tendinitis in 8 of my 10 goddam fingers for over a fucking year. Stupid ass morons who supposedly know what the hell is up with tendon injuries in high level athletes (which I´m not, yet, but how the fuck will i ever be if I can´t climb!), and still have no fucking clue how to fix my hands.

Rest they say, antiinflamatories they say, 2 weeks and you´re good to go they say. $TUP!) FV(K!VG IDIOTS!!

Having fingers and not being able to use them for anything even slightly strenuous is no fucking life for me!

Sorry to hear about it; that sucks. My only thoughts are find a specialist and in particular, someone who really does sports medicine. You might want to look into the doctors that do work for the Celtics, Pats, and Sox. I don't know how it will extend to fingers, but a friend in LA had an ACL tear, and an incompetent doctor led to a second one. The second time he went to the doctor who works with the Lakers, and had a much better experience and a doctor who understood what he meant when he said he wanted to play soccer again. At the least, those doctors might know who locally is a real finger specialist with the sports medicine outlook.

Drink beer (good for blood profusion to the peripheries) and good luck.

wah wah wah...look buddy, at least you HAVE insurance. I'm so sick and tired of people bitching and moaning about their copayments when if anyone in my family gets sick or injured we're looking at paying at least a grand - hospitals charge people who don't have insurance nore to make up for the insurance companies only covering 80% of the bill. I only WISH we had "plenty of copayments at $15 a pop".

last spring I had a simple sprain on my ankle. If I had had insurance (which my parents can't afford) the co payment would have been around $75. Instead, I'm trying to pay of an $800 I really can't afford.

So, sorry about your finger, and i hope it gets better, but remember how lucky you still are.

They have no fucking clue, and seem completely incurious as to what could be wrong with it. Hey, I can make a fist, I can extend my fingers, what more could I ask for?Fucking stupid fucking fuckers! GO

Curt, thanks for the reference, I'll call him on Monday and ask if he knows anyone good in the Boston area.

'Biner - congratulations - you win, you have it worse off than me. Is that what you want to hear? No? You want me to be grateful that I have health insurance? Well I'm sorry, but while you're technically right, if any of the doctors had given me even a shred of information, I'd feel a lot more grateful.

I had the same problem and went to several hand specialists who didn't give an f. I bougt the book "one move too many" and treated myself. I was back climbing in no time. I had two extremely strained pulleys, one with a substantial tear but not all the way through. I had tests done and one hand specialist diagnosed it and then just told me not too use it for a few months till it healed. However, it wasn't until i followed the therapy regiment in this book that i was able to climb again. Get the book, it's gold.

Seriously.... good luck with the quacks Gabe and I hope you find a cure for that finger. I had a similar injury, but not as bad as yours sounds. I just had to wait it out a few months and not climb too hard, and it got better on its own. Guess I was lucky... I was also a few years younger.

I think the suggestions of the sports medicine(and orthopedic, I guess....I have no clue what that is, but sounds like the one who suggested it do understand that is the type of specialist to be seeing) are going to be your ticket.

Good luck with it.

And since a straight up serious thread is just no fun whatsoever.....I feel I need to see the "had/have it worse"pot raise the ante.

I have no health insurance either, so being ill goes under the "leader must not fall" tenet for me. Not only could my parents have not afforded health insurance for my "passed the age of 18" ass (I knew so very well how the money deal went in my home that I consciously made the decision not to attend college because of the burden it would have been) - Oh...I always get off on tangents....Anyway, not only that, my parents are both dead.

In regards to health insurance, I think most people are in a position to afford it, they just choose not to.

I grew up in a poor family, where any pocket money I received was from a job of my own. My mother was sick from when I was 11 until she died. We had no health insurance and certainly not enough money to afford my college. Luckily in Australia university is paid up front by the government, but is repaid with taxes through your life. Health insurance is a bit of money but worth it, from all the horror stories I hear and see.

By the time I was old enough and wise enough to realize, I put money into health insurance every month with at least the peace of mind to know it would save me a lot of money if the time came, even if nothing happened to me. That in itself is worth the money.... and you know what? If someone can afford a Friday night of drinking each week, they can afford health insurance. Simple as that. I'd give up beer altogether if I knew I'd be covered (for the most part) if anything happened to me.

.... and you know what? If someone can afford a Friday night of drinking each week, they can afford health insurance.

How much beer do you drink on a Friday night!!!??? hahaha....

LOL!! Actually you don't need to drink too much beer or shots in a month to equal the money you would pay into health insurance. I have known a lot of people who could blow $80 on a night out. I'd be lucky to top $20, but it adds up. So too does a hospital bill if one is not covered.